Machine for manufacturing flexible metal pipes



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C- KQPF Nov. 2 1926.

MACHINE Fon MANUFACTURING FLEXIBLE-METAL PIPEs Filed July 1. 1925 Nov. 2 1926.

1,605,194 c. KOPF j lMACHINE: FoR MANUFACTURING FLEXIBLE METAL PIFEs Filed Ju1y`1. 1925 2 sheets-sheet 2 y Ivwwor l y ,azrl Kopf y y Azz-0m?. Y

Patented" Nov. 2, 1926. UNITED STATES A PATENT -oFFlcE CARL KOPF, 0F DURLACH, GERMANY.

lMACHINE FOR MANUFAQTUBING- FLEXIBLE METAL PIPES.

Application led July 1, 1925, Serial No. 40,938, and in Germany July 8, 1924.

My invention relates-to a machine by which flexible metal pipes can be manufactured from metal tubes provided with undulated walls, the undulations being jumped up whereby the previously rigid tube is converted into aflexible pipe.

The gist of the invention'resides in the featurethat the tools employed for jumping up the undulations serve also for the stepwise aXial movement of the undulated tube jor pipe whereby the machine is. considerably simplified vand its output is considerably increased.

My invention is illustrated diagrammatically and by way of example in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a longil tudinal section through one constructional form ofthe machine in the plane ct-a of Fig. 5, the metal pipe treated being shown in dotted lines in the left-hand part of the top ofthe machine; Fig. 2 is a cross-section in the plane b-b of Fig. 4; Fig. 3 is a cross-v section in the plane c c of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a side-view; Fig. 5 is a plan, partlyin section in the plane d-d of- Fig'. 2; -and Figs. 6 and 7 show details whichare also fully described hereinafter.

The machine consists in general of a body or frame to which the various operative members are attached. It is driven by means of the pulley 1 and the shaft 1 which transmits the power to the cog-wheels 2 and 3 and the spur-wheels 4 5 6 and 7 (Figs. 1 and 2), whereby the shafts 8, 9, and 9a are rotated.

" There are two tool-slides 11 and two toolslides v12 (Figs. 1, 6, and 7), each of them being soarranged as to be movable horizontally and having at its inner end a semicircularrecess (Fig. 2) adapted to engage the metal pipe. The slides 12 are arranged behind the slides 11. In Fig. 1 it is assumed that the slides 1I lare closed so as to have grasped the tube whereas the slides 12 1 2 areopen, as in Fig.`2.

. There are, furthermore,two cam-disks 22 and two cam-disks 24 which all are secured to the shaft 9'1 which is rotated by a cogwheel 7. The cam-disks 22 actuate the toolslides 11 and the cam-disks 24 actuate the toolslides 12.l The power is' transmitted from the cam-disks22 to the tool-slides 11 whereby the work-piece will be grasped rmly between said slides whereupon the jumping up or, more precisely, another jumping up will take place and will be efected as ldescribed hereinafter.

The tool-slides 11 are located on a slide 17 which is common to them .and can be moved in the direction to the tool-slides 12. The slide 17 is `connected with two Vtoggle-joint levers 13, to the joint of each of which is jointed a vertical rod 14 connected at its lower end with a one-armed lever 15 fulcrumed at 15a to the body of the machine and provided at its other end with a roll 15b co-oper'ating with a cam-disk 16 aixed to the horizontal shaft 8 which is located below the slide 17 and parallel to it. It is obvious that the slide 17 with the tool-slides 11 can be moved towards, Vand away from, the 'tool- 'l denotes the tube-part next to be jumped and this -is effected by moving the slide u 1'?, with the tool-slides 11 (which have grasped the 'tube m between them) towards the slides 12, the -relative ositions of the members concerned being t en that shown in Fig. 7.

Between the two cam-disks l16 also two cam-disks 19 are secured to the shaft 8, and two one-armed levers 18 ulcrumed at 18a to the body of the machine are connected vwith the levers 15 by draw-rods 2O whereby the levers 15-'can .be turned upwards `"and can lift the rods 111V so as to aetuate the toggle-joint levers in such a manner that.V the slide 17 with the tool-slides 11 is withdrawn these slides having, however, been opened prior thereto so that they can slide rearwardlyY over the next undulation of the undulated tube a'. i'

The operations of the cam-disks 22 and and of the cam-disks 16 and 19 are so timed relatively to one another that the sequence of the consecutive actions is as follows: Supposing, the slides 11 and 12 be in the position shown in Fig. 7, the slides 12 are b eing withdrawn, whereupon the pipe a! will be shoved automatically to the left by reason vdulation of the tube and are then moved towards one another so as to grasp firmly said tube: now the slides 11 (always moved by the slidev17 and the members actuating it) are moved again to the left (from the position Fig. 6 into the position Fig. 7) so as to jump up the undulation lying next to the pipe m2. Now the slides 12 are again Withdrawn from the fiexible pipe m2, then again moved towards it so as to grasp it again, and so the cycle of operation proceeds continuously.

' In the constructional form illustrated the slides 11 and 12 and the bell-crank levers 21 and 25 are connected with one another not positively but by the intermediary of helical springs 23 and26, Whereby'a certain yieldingness of the slides is provided and jamming is prevented. l

Instead of attaching the cam-disks 22 directly to the shaft 9, I prefer to insert an excentric sleeve 27,Fig. 4, by means of which said cam-disks can* be s0 turned that the slides 12 are kept in their outer position so as to facilitate the introduction of a fresh tube into the machine. This having been done, the sleeve is being turned back into its former position and the machine is then started when it will operate continuously in the manner described until the freshly introduced rigid undulated tube has been converted into a fiexible pipe, as set forth.

I claim: .Y

A machine for manufacturing lflexible metal pipes from rigid undulated tubes, comprising, lthe combination with two pairs of tool-slides arranged one after another in the axial direction of the tube, of means for moving the slides of each pair towards, and away from, one another another slide carrying one of said pairs, toggle-joint levers connected with this slide and adapted to move it towards, and away from, the other pair of the first-mentioned slides, draw-rods jointed to the joints of said toggle-joint levers, levers connected with the other ends of said rods, crank-disks arranged to operate these levers, and means for rotating the several cam-disks, the said operating means being so timed that the said tool-slides are adapted to effect the axial step-by-step feedmotion of the said tube, substantially as set forth. I

1n testimony whereof I affix my signature.

CARL KOPF. 

